On the eve of Hari Raya Puasa, I told my son that daddy doesn’t care so much about exams (CC), whereas 2 other skills are more valuable.

AA) academic foundation skills + self-study capabilities (自学能力)
https://btv-open.dreamhosters.com/2016/03/10/academic-foundation-skills-for-boy/
https://btv-open.dreamhosters.com/2016/07/06/study-habits-needed-in-us-schools/

BB) other non-exam domains such as
* renzi
* competitive sport or fitness
* music
See https://btv-open.dreamhosters.com/2016/06/04/stickywhen-do-i-want-boy-to-get-serious-about-a-target/

CC) exams — the Great Singapore Race among kiasu parents
* top schools
* streaming
* Chinese compo — non-strategic compared to speaking and reading

I am more serious about his AA and BB:
– I do want my son to be serious about piano exams.
– I do want my son to be serious about competitive sports.
– I do want my son to be serious about foundation skills
(https://tanbintpy.wordpress.com/2016/03/10/academic-foundation-skills-for-boy/). If I set a specific measurable target, I don’t want to let it slip.
– I would even say that many non-exam skills (renzi, piano..) are more strategic than exams

See also

roller coaster:abilities+effort framework

https://btv-open.dreamhosters.com/2016/07/04/academic-benchmark-target-above-average/ https://tanbintpy.wordpress.com/2016/03/10/what-if-boy-is-average-in-exams/
https://tanbintpy.wordpress.com/2016/07/03/toxic-fellow-parents-fixation-on-top-schools/

What about his very poor Chinese writing skill? I would say if he puts in some (not a lot) real effort he should be able to become average. So my concern is the self-study habit (AA) not exams.